The present invention relates to issue of a consumer good to the final consumer and, in particular, the constitution of a consumer good at the time it is issued to the final consumer or in preparation for issue to the final consumer. The consumer good may be, for example, a packet of cigarettes or packet of pharmaceutical products or athletic shoes, but not telephone items such as calling cards. Such consumer goods are usually offered to the final consumer or issued to the final consumer with a brand identity. The final consumer associates the brand identity of the consumer good with special notions of quality, or wishes to purchase a consumer good of a particular brand for other reasons. The manufacturers of brand articles and also final consumers frequently fall victim to counterfeits. The consumer goods are not marketed by the company with the legal right to use the brand, rather as a counterfeit/pirated good deceptively using the brand of the rightful owner. Final consumers often have little chance of distinguishing between genuine goods and counterfeit goods.
The object of the present invention is to provide final consumers a better way of checking whether they have purchased genuine goods or counterfeits.
There is also a basic problem that manufacturers of consumer goods encounter difficulty establishing customer loyalty systems because the final consumers are not usually known to them. A further object of the present invention is therefore to improve ways of achieving customer loyalty using technical means when consumer goods are purchased.